Diane is answering all the most popular scholarships questions, as concisely as possible, in a three-part Ultimate Scholarship FAQ. Today, Part III: Scholarship Search. (Here are links to the previous two parts, The Basics and Eligibility, if you missed them.)

A scholarship search engine is a website with a massive database of scholarships that you can search through. You can enter information about yourself and view scholarships that closely match that description. SALT™ has its own scholarship search engine for our members (membership is free!), and other popular options include www.fastweb.com and www.scholarships.com.

Where can I find “local” scholarships?

Local scholarships are scholarships offered to a very small geographic area (for example, only residents of ZIP code 33167 can apply). The best chance of finding one of these scholarships is to check the counselors’ offices at local schools. Another way to find local scholarships is to use Google to search for scholarships (like “scholarships for 33167”).

How many scholarships should I apply for?

As many as you can find! The more scholarships you apply for, the higher your chances of winning.

This website says that they have “secret” scholarships that no one else knows about. Should I pay for this list?

Nope. There are no “secret” scholarships. This is an example of a scholarship scam that you should avoid.

I tried searching for scholarships, but I can’t find any. What am I doing wrong?

Many students simply are not putting in the persistence and time needed to hunt down scholarships. The best piece of advice I can give for you in this situation is to search at least an hour or so every week. Eventually, you will get better at it and you’ll start to think of your own strategies for finding new scholarships.

Have a question about searching for scholarships? Leave it in the comments!

I clicked on the link through the email. I then clicked on the link to SALT’s search engine, but got an error. Is this because I had not logged in? If that is the case, there should be a message that comes up and states that you must be a member and gives you the login box.

Teresa, thanks very much for bringing this to our attention. My apologies for the issue with the link. It looks like we moved that page on our website, which created the error. I’ll update this post accordingly. In the meantime, you can access our scholarship search engine here. Please note that this site is separate from the main saltmoney.org experience and will require you to create an account.

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